Can a Circumcision Reverse Itself?

Updated on January 09, 2009
R.B. asks from Berlin, NH
15 answers

I feel silly asking this but can a circumcision reverse itself? My 3 month old had a circumcision 3 days after he was born and everything went great. Since then it seems that the skin has bunched up around the tip and it looks very much like it did before the circumcision. I have a 31 month old son and after his circumcision it never looked like that. I'm sure everything is ok, there really aren't any medical issues. But it keeps collecting white gunk under that skin and I want to make sure that what I'm seeing is normal and I don't want to miss something that could be a problem. There is a little redness when I pull the skin back to clean it but nothing that would alarm.

Thanks ladies for reading this. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

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So What Happened?

Thank you ladies I feel so much better. We are working on getting him an appointment at the BAMC, they haven't switched our tri-care to down here yet, but as soon as that Happens I will get the doctor to double check. I couldn't have asked for better advice.

More Answers

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R.L.

answers from Houston on

No a circumcision can not reverse itself because they actually remove the skin. Most likely this is just due to regular growth and he will eventually grow into his skin.

It is very important to keep the area clean. It is completely normal for white gunk to build up, but if not cleaned properly (by pulling the skin down and washing with mild soap and a washcloth) then it can lead to irritation and infection.

Sometimes a small skin tag will develop and cause the skin to bunch up. At your next pediatrician appt just have the doc take a look. Most often skin tags will break on their own as he grows, but sometimes they need to be broken by the doctor.

I had a similar experience with my son, he's 8 now and every thing is growing and looking just fine!

1 mom found this helpful
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S.F.

answers from Austin on

Hi R.,
I agree with the posts about continuing to pull the skin back enough so that it is not attached to the head or underneath the head and keeping vaseline on it to keep it from reattaching. HOWEVER, the skin does NOT have to pulled away in one big swoop like the doctor did in one of your posts that caused a lot of pain. This will tear the skin, leaving it raw and very painful both at the time and when he urinates in his diaper. (If this happens, the vaseline will provide a nice barrier to the urine so that it does not burn his raw skin.) Just keep pulling gently, and eventually it will roll back easily, probably rolling some of the white stuff (smegma) out as it goes. That is what happened for us. My son is now 16 months old and the skin has not tried to reattach since he was about 6 months old I think.
Good Luck! Hope your little one is doing okay.

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C.W.

answers from Houston on

R.! Hi! My son's did the same thing. It's normal for the skin to try to replace itself the doc told me. It's trying to grow back but won't. Jack's doc told me to use neosporin on it daily. His little winky head seemed swollen and got red too. It didn't hurt him and the medicine helped right away. The white stuff is just skin cells that are dead and totally normal. It's called smegma. My son is almost 6 momths and everything is fine now. I'd give a ring to your pediatrician if you feel too worried. I hope everything is ok. :) ~C.

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S.C.

answers from College Station on

Hi R.,
Just let you know that happened to my sons too, its all normal though just keep it clean and he will be alright. And no it cant be reversed.

A.D.

answers from Austin on

yes my son experienced this. its really nothing to be alarmed about. at your next pediatric appt ask him/her about it. I asked and right then and there he pulled back and broke the skin and cleaned out the white stuff. Just make sure you keep pulling back on it and cleaning. I did this and its still kind of grew back but the next appt i asked again and he said when they turn about 3 it will naturally come apart and look like its supposed to.

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S.R.

answers from Beaumont on

I am not to sure what happened with my oldest but we had to have him recircumsized and the Dr said tha sometimes enough does not get removed and that it does not happen often please do not wait to long to take care of it cause my son was over a year old and it was h*** o* him cause everytime we went to his pediatrician he would have to pull the skin back and he is afraid at all his appt now thankfully only once a year now. It took me a while to get it fixed i kept getting told was that his fat pack was causing it to happen and then finally I decided to call his ped surgeon to relook at it and he said he had to be redone. I waited so long that his area looks a little deformed but I am sure it will straighten out as he gets older

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B.M.

answers from Austin on

Hi R..

I have 2 boys ages 3 yrs. and 10 months. Two different doctors did the circumcisions and what a world of difference. My 3 yr old had to be re-circumcised due to the first doctor not taking off enough skin, which caused it to adhere all the time. Plus while potty training it's difficult for a little boy to pull back skin before he can go pee. We made the decision to have it corrected and we are so thankful we did. The recovery time was only a few days and now he doesn't even remember it. My 10 month old has never had any problems with his circumcision. I have learned that some doctors are better at circumcision than others.
We were also fortunate that insurance covered our re-circumcision.
Hope this helps. Good Luck.

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M.C.

answers from Austin on

If you have any question I would see the doctor. A friend's son had to have another circumcision at 2 and this involved anesthesia and the like. I don't know if they didn't cut enough skin the first time or what. If there is a problem, I would want to know earlier than later in case there are some non-surgical things that can be done.

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T.V.

answers from Houston on

Yes it CAN reattach. You need to have your pedi look at in and in the meantime, pull the skin down away from the head at every diaper change. If it's not addressed now your son could require recicrumcision at a later date.

Good luck!

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J.C.

answers from Austin on

My son has the same problem and he is almost 18 months. Just make sure to keep pulling back the skin b/c my pediatrician said that it can start to grow back. Just once a day or so during diaper change, pull the skin back and clean it. Also ask your doctor at your next appointment just so they can check and make sure everything is ok!

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J.S.

answers from Austin on

my son's did the same thing the doc said that when he thinned out it would look natural he was very chunky hope that helps J.

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M.T.

answers from Austin on

I think you need to take him to the doctor. I don't remember that being something my son had after his circomcission. White gunk could be an infection beginning. I do remeber redness but only for a short while after the procedure. I would definitely consult with your doctor because you don't want an infection to form.

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M.N.

answers from Austin on

Pull it back as much as possible and PRAY it doesn't re-attach! This happened with my, now 3 year-old, son and it's now re-attached! No doctor I've found will fix it for me. They just say that when he goes through puberty it should pull back out! I'm not convenced and wish I would have done something different earlier.

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C.P.

answers from Houston on

What you are describing sounds very natural. Just keep him clean. Some males have more skin around the tip than others, and maybe the doctor clipped as much as usual. Dousn't sound to me like there is anything to worry about.

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T.P.

answers from El Paso on

My son's did the same thing. Make sure that you keep vasoline on it so that the skin does not attach itself, because then when you pull it back to clean it it will tear and hurt!!! My son eventullay had to have the circ. redone (he was about 18 months) It just kept getting infected no matter what I put on it. Just keep an eye on it and talk to your Dr about it. After we had a pedatric uroligist(spelling????) fix the circomcision, we have not had any more problems and he is 4 now. Good luck.

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